The Vampire Killer theme from the Castlevania series is by far one of the most recognizable gaming themes out there, and it’s probably one of the best themes from the days of 8-bit gaming. It has also shown up in almost every iteration of the Castlevania series, morphing and changing as time progressed. It’s hard to really get a grasp on it all thanks to the many iterations of the theme, but a recently discovered YouTube vid puts it all together for us.
The theme has been through some rough spots (Castlevania Chronicles, 6:28) and some absolute brilliance (Akumajo Dracula X: Gekka no Yasoukyoku – Nocturne in the Moonlight, 4:54), though I have to say that my favorite has got to be Super Castlevania IV (1:29). It’s the perfect combination of old school and revamp. What is really cool about the video and the theme itself is that it easily takes us through a history of game music: from the beeps and boops at the birth of gaming to the over synthesized 90s to the scores of today and, somewhat ironically, back to the beeps and boops as the series went mobile. Can’t wait to hear what is next.
Because of YouTube’s 10 minute time limit the video’s creator couldn’t fit in Castlevania Judgement, which actually has a very strong version of the Vampire Killer theme, so I’ve popped it in below.
